Saturday, September 27, 2008

What the election means...

I am not going to post a blog about who I think won the first Presidential Debate last night.  If you are a regular reader of my blog, then you have gathered that I am an Obama fan. Stating that I think he dominated the debate last night would be redundant. So I won't comment on the debate winner. I will, however, comment on what was said.  I think that it is important for us to remember that when we have two senators speaking about the wars that we are involved in as a nation, they are not talking about a war of words. They are not talking about us sending over bombs- they are talking about sending your neighbors children, your friends... your children, overseas, to lay everything on the line.  I support our troops. I appreciate their sacrifice and everything that they give so that I can be free to sit here in Chicago, at my computer, and blog about what is going on in our country. With that said, I think they need to come home. I think that we are needlessly spending money and sacrificing our young men and women for a war that Bush conned us into.  The following article is about two young men from Illinois who paid the ultimate price in this two-front war. I think we should bring back our troops so that no other family will have to endure the sorry of these two families... 19 and 21, these two men hardly got to see what life has to offer. I am praying for their loved ones and for their units...

Services will be held this morning for two Chicago-area soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Family and friends will gather to remember Pfc. Leonard Gulczynski, a 19-year-old Army engineer from Carol Stream who died from injuries sustained in a Humvee accident in Iraq earlier this month. Services are scheduled for 10 a.m. at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 1415 Lies Road in Carol Stream.

In Melrose Park, Spec. Joshua Harris will be remembered at his old high school. Harris, 21, a member of the Illinois National Guard, was killed after his vehicle struck a roadside bomb in Afghanistan on Sept. 17. Services are set for 10:30 a.m. at Walther Lutheran High School, 900 Chicago Ave. in Melrose Park.

Harris was posthumously promoted to sergeant. He died while serving alongside Sgt. Jason Vazquez, 24, of Chicago, who also was in the vehicle.

Services for Vazquez, a Cook County corrections officer who was posthumously promoted to staff sergeant, were held Friday.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Welcome Back

Hey all... I have been away for a little while.  I took a little trip to Washington, D.C. and have now returned to continue my job search and comment on the world! If I could somehow get paid for blogging.... I would be Perez Hilton- living the high life!! :)

Thursday, September 11, 2008

On this day of remembrance

As I think back to this date seven years ago, I can see very clearly where I was and what I was doing. When the events of September 11, 2001 began to unfold, I was sitting on my very small couch (loveseat) in my very small living room, in my very small rented house in Lansing, Michigan. September 11, 2001 was the beginning of my second week of law school. I woke up early that morning to look over my Property I homework (because if you have ever taken a property course you know that once is never enough). I turned on the TV for background noise and an hour later it happened.



Words cannot express the feelings that ran through my body that day. The panic stricken phone calls to my parent's house; the calls to my friends; the excessive news watching. I have never seen something like that before. In every movie you could ever find the depiction of NYC and its inhabitants is always the same: the city never sleeps, it will eat you alive, so will the people... To look up and see those people running in the street and crying; firefighters and police running into buildings; people hugging in the street or trekking across the Brooklyn Bridge... that sticks with you. That stuck with me. The aftermath of posters of missing people and searches sticks with me also. September 11th will never (should never) leave out consciousness. We should never forget that we are susceptible. We should never forget those we lost. We should never forget the bravery that was shown on that day and the weeks and months to follow. We should never confuse things that are happening now- most notably the war- with the things that happened on that day. On that day we all grew up a bit; there was a feeling lost that morning that we will never get back.



I remember so clearly on September 12, 2001 there was a news anchor reporting on the happenings of the day before. He said that September 11th was going to be written into history and on our minds like Pearl Harbor and the assiassination of JFK. We would always be able to look back and remember what we were doing and how our lives were affected by this terrorism. He was right. With that said, I am going to enjoy this pleasant fall day. I am going to call my parents and tell them I love them. I am going to go home and bake treats for my dogs and give them extra hugs and kisses, because as Horace says "Rejoice while you are alive; enjoy the day; live life to the fullest; make the most of what you have. It is later than you think." It is later than you think.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

When fellow Republicans will not endorse you...

What are Johnny boy and crazy ass Sarah going to do??



Paul says he turned down appeal to endorse McCain
By SUZANNE GAMBOA, Associated Press Writer 41 minutes ago
Republican Rep. Ron Paul, the libertarian-leaning Texas lawmaker who attracted a devoted following in the GOP primaries, said Wednesday he rejected an appeal to endorse John McCain's presidential bid.
Paul said the request came from Phil Gramm, the former McCain adviser and ex-senator whom the campaign jettisoned after he said the country was a "nation of whiners" about the economy. Gramm defeated Paul in the Republican primary for the Senate in 1984.
Speaking to reporters at a news conference, Paul said Gramm called him this week and told him, "You need to endorse McCain." The Texas congressman said he refused.
"The idea was that he would do less harm than the other candidate," Paul said.
Paul won no primaries in the Republican nomination contest but developed a strong following on the Internet.
He appeared at a news conference with three third-party candidates: independent Ralph Nader; former Georgia Democratic Rep. Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party candidate; and Chuck Baldwin, the Constitution Party candidate. Bob Barr, the Libertarian candidate, was invited but said at his own news conference later that he declined because Paul didn't endorse one candidate.
"We need today, now, 55 days before this election, bold, focused, specific leadership and that is not the amorphous kind that says any of the above or none of the above," Barr said.
Barr said he had asked Paul to join him as his running mate on the Libertarian Party ticket while his current running mate, Wayne Root would step aside. "We don't anticopate that he will," Barr said.
Earlier, Paul called the presidential elections a charade and said voters are faced with the "lesser of two evils."
The majority of Americans, about 60 percent, are unhappy with their choices in the race, Paul said. He urged the three third-party candidates to bring all their supporters together to vote against the "establishment candidates."
Paul, 73, a former doctor, ran for president as the Libertarian candidate in 1988. He is unopposed in the November race for his congressional seat.
Nader derided media focus on what he called "lipstickgate," referring to the bickering between the McCain and Barack Obama campaigns over whether a phrase used by Obama was a sexist comment against Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.
Nader, a consumer protection advocate, acknowledged differences among the third-party candidates such as government regulation of health and safety standards. But he added that he shares Paul's support for more opportunity in the political process for third-party candidates.

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Where are your children?

Let me preface this blog entry. This does not apply to all parents and children- however... if you see shades of you and your children in this blog, I take no responsibility for that!


Ok, maybe I am old fashioned. It could possibly be me... I doubt it. It could be I am pissed off because parents now-a-days give no discipline to these crazy ass kids running around. The subject of children have been on my mind lately and it was not until I had a concrete example that I wanted to comment. Examples came to me on Friday, Sunday and Monday. All of these examples leaves me asking: do you know where your children are? Do you know what they are doing? Are they acting like they have sense? What kind of upbringing have you instilled in them? Where are your children???



Friday I came home from work, let the dogs out and fed them- separately because I have two fatties that like to eat everyone's food, but that is neither here nor there. While I was in the midst of feeding the dogs and let them out again (so there is less of a possiblity of having to spend Friday night mopping the floor) there came a screech from outside like a small child caught in an oversized blender. For those of you who don't know, I purchased a corner house on the south side of Chicago. Often, to my dismay, the neighborhood kids think it is fun and exciting to hang out on my front lawn, crash through my bushes and push each other into my house. They think it is funny until I get fed up and become the crazy neighborhood lady and start correcting their bad behavior from my perch in the living room. I have done it on MANY occasions and am not afraid to do it again. Friday was different. School started from Chicago Public Schools last Tuesday, so the neighborhood gets quiet earlier- which I like, so Friday, I just let the noise happen. A couple times I sat on my perch and opened the blinds and was amazed at what I saw: kids sitting in the middle of the street, talking on their cell phones; kids hitting each other with sticks; kids with no jackets on- even though it was 55 degrees out; kids pulling each other into the street and children dancing in the street as cars approached. Now, all of you who actually know me, know that I am not against having a good time, BUT...
WTF, where were their parents????

When growing up in Columbus (Ohio- which is not even close to what goes down on the southside of Chicago) my sister and I had to be on the porch when the street lights came on. Please, I don't want to even talk about what happened if my parents actually looked on the porch and we weren't there. Yet, at 10:30 on a Friday, I looked out my windown at the screaming kids and I knew they didnt belong to my neighbors. They stayed out until 11:30.

Sunday, there was more of the same- they called it a night at an early 9:45, but the noise factor was the same. So I just started to think that I live down the block from some bad ass kids, with even worse parents. Monday showed me that it was not just my neighborhood.

I ride the train downtown (could you imagine me and my sassy mouth stuck in rush hour twice a day? Yeah, me either). Generally I am surrounded by businessmen and women. Monday, however, was different. There were kids on our train (school is back in session). They were horrid. There was crying from the small ones (along with pleading from the parents- begging them to behave). There were curse words coming from the big ones... ok, I have the mouth of a dirty sailor, but even I will hold off until I am not surrounded by old ladies and people I don't know. Seriously, where are your children? For the parents of the small ones: all I can say is my parents never pled with me to behave. They told me to behave and they said it once. There was no way M&A were taking back talk, temper tantrums or any other ridiculous behavior. Noone wanted to be a part of that. My parents had simple rules, one of which was you will NOT embarrass the family while in public. Even my sister, who KNOWS that she is a drama queen would not have tantrums outside the house. There is NO WAY that is going to fly. Hell, I am 30 and I still wouldn't do it.

For the parents of the big ones: you need to get your children under control. Yes, I do know that you cannot control your kids 24 hours a day, but the amount of disrespect that these kids were showing leads me to believe that it is not occasional; instead it is habit. Friends or not, relaxed environment or not, your kids should not run the house. You are the parent.

I am very opinionated (as if you could not tell from my daily posts) and I think that the character of a person starts at home. Parents are responsible for training a child to be productive members of society. Every once in a while a child will stray- I get that, but just letting your kids run amuk is nuts. I look around and I am scared. Not about one of them hurting me for correcting their bad asses out my front window, instead I am afraid of what the future will bring. What will happen when all these self absorbed people enter the workforce? College? Parenthood? There should be time for correcting you child. There should be time for making sure they help out their fellow man. There should be time to make sure that they give back to their community. You have to teach them discipline. Why? Because, as my friends and I are starting to find out, life is not always fair. It is not always a party and you don't always get your way. Sometimes you have to work twice as hard to get half as much... sometimes you have to give yourself a pep talk to get out of bed and go to work, sometimes you want to shout- and you may be justified, but you just CAN'T. What are your kids going to do during those times? Throw a tantrum? In order for us to have a productive society, we have to have productive children... and in order to have that we need involved parents, who teach their children right from wrong, charity, humility, grace and to love their neighbor. So again, I ask, where are your children?

Monday, September 08, 2008

Some of us need help.

So, I came across this article today... Let me just say that it is thinking like the elderly woman included in this piece that will send America on a permanent decline. I guess that I always knew that it would be increasingly hard for me to "make it" because I am both Black and Female, but who the hell are these bumkins? I mean, really, the people who think that RACE alone would disqualify a candidate are almost beyond redemption. The idea alone is absolutely assinine. Now, do I know some stereotypical Black people? Absolutely! Do I know some stereotypical White people? Absolutely. Listen: there are a reason why stereotypes are persistent. There ARE people who fit the bill, but then there are some of us who are so well BEYOND what you think we are. Barack Obama is one of those people. I would like to think that I am also. He should be the next President of the United States. There is only one reason that Barack will not win this election: close minded people like those listed in this article. This should make the people of Northeast Philadelphia embarrassed.


Biden gets mixed welcome in Northeast Local Dem leaders say race is issue for many voters
September 6, 2008 - Philadelphia Daily News

Dave Davies

Sep. 6, 2008 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- DEMOCRATIC vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden went stumping for votes yesterday in Northeast Philadelphia, where Democrats need to earn the love of Democrats who voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama in the April primary.
He worked a diner, gave a rousing speech on bread-and-butter issues at a union hall, and reeled off a memorable line tying the Republican candidate to the unpopular team in the White House.
"My friend John McCain and George Bush are joined at the hip," Biden said. "And we need a hip replacement very, very badly."
So how is the ticket doing with the Northeast's white working and middle-class voters?
Mike McAleer, the veteran Democratic ward leader of the 66th ward in the far Northeast, said Obama and Biden haven't closed the deal yet.
"The Dunkin' Donut crowd tells me that we've got everything going for us but Obama," McAleer said. "They can't give me a direct answer. Do I have them right now in the 66th ward? No. But I got 60 days to get them."
Asked what the problem is with Obama, McAleer paused and said: "It's his color . . . I tell them he's half white and half black. He's got a better perspective for everything in this country."
Joe Dougherty, business manager for Ironworkers Local 401, which hosted Biden's morning event, also said race is an issue for many Democrats.
"I hear it in the neighborhood, and I hear it in the union," Dougherty said. "But I remind them (Obama's) mother was white. He sees all sides, and he could be just what we need to bring this country together."
Biden talked to the crowd of about 200 senior citizens and union members about lower taxes, trade agreements that protect American jobs, and ending what he called the Republicans' "war on unions."
Later, Biden and Gov. Rendell worked the lunchtime crowd at The Dining Car, a neighborhood spot on Frankford Avenue.
Biden smiled, laughed, shook hands and sometimes hugged diners or slid into booths next to them. Sometimes he felt the love coming back, and sometimes he didn't.
Charles Daukas said he'd vote for the Obama-Biden team.
"Put it this way, if Hillary was running I would have really went hard for it," Daukas said. "But I'm a Democrat."
In a corner booth, Biden sat down and, after a moment's conversation, planted a kiss on the forehead of Carolyn Bauer, age 89. Bauer explained afterward it wasn't such a friendly encounter.
"I told him I'm not going to vote for him," Bauer said. "Anybody who runs with a guy with a name like that is not going to get my vote. It'd be disgusting to get a man named Barack Obama as president of the United States. No way. I mean it . . . I'm going to vote for McCain and the lady."
"[Obama's] a Muslim," Bauer added. "He pretends to be a Christian, and he isn't, he's a Muslim."
Obama has attended Christian churches for years, and his children are baptized.
After his stops in Northeast Philadelphia, Biden attended a rally in Langhorne.

Friday, September 05, 2008

Oh Sarah, get that foot out of your mouth...

LOL. Sarah Palin has done more than upset me with her lies... she has upset the Community Organizers across the country. They want an apology... rightly so. Let's see if she jumps off that pedestal and gives them one. ** At the end of this article are the truths that I posted yesterday. I have omitted them for space, but feel free to visit the site, or scroll down.**


http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur46797.cfm
*Numerous lines in Gov. Sarah Palin's speech at the GOP convention Wednesday night have been exposed as lies by various media outlets. But one of her quips struck a nerve that has galvanized grassroots organizations across the country to respond en masse.
During the convention on Wednesday, the former mayor of Wasilla (population 7,000) took a jab at Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama with the line: “I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities.”
Her sentiments were reinforced in two earlier speeches on the convention floor Wednesday in St. Paul.
• Former Governor George Pataki said: “[Barack Obama] was a community organizer. What in God’s name is a community organizer? I don’t even know if that’s a job.”
• Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani said: “On the other hand, you have a resume from a gifted man with an Ivy League education. He worked as a community organizer. What? [Laughter]…I said, OK, OK, maybe this is the first problem on the resume.”
In the wee hours of the following morning, Obama's campaign sent an e-mail to supporters objecting – among other things – to the attacks against community organizers. It read:
Let's clarify something for them right now.
Community organizing is how ordinary people respond to out-of-touch politicians and their failed policies.
And it's no surprise that, after eight years of George Bush, millions of people have found that by coming together in their local communities they can change the course of history. That promise is what our campaign has been about from the beginning.
Throughout our history, ordinary people have made good on America's promise by organizing for change from the bottom up. Community organizing is the foundation of the civil rights movement, the women's suffrage movement, labor rights, and the 40-hour workweek. And it's happening today in church basements and community centers and living rooms across America.
Also on Thursday, a coalition of community organizers across the country launched the Web site OrganizersFightBack. (http://organizersfightback.wordpress.com/) to demand an apology from Gov. Palin and to "defend their work organizing Americans who have been left behind by unemployment, lack of health insurance and the national housing crisis."
• “Community organizers work in neighborhoods that have been hit hardest by the failing economy,” said John Raskin, founder of Community Organizers of America and a community organizer on the West Side of Manhattan. “The last thing we need is for Republican officials to mock us on television when we’re trying to rebuild the neighborhoods they have destroyed. Maybe if everyone had more houses than they can count, we wouldn’t need community organizers. But I work with people who are getting evicted from their only home. If John McCain and the Republicans understood that, maybe they wouldn’t be so quick to make fun of community organizers like me.”
• David Gonzalez of the New York Times has posted a column, Bronx Organizers React to G.O.P. Punchlines, featuring the work of two past local community organizers still active in the neighborhoods.
• Also, this entry on the Huffington Post features the Center for Community Change's official response to the remarks.

Unemployment at 6.1%...

For all of you who think that politics is politics and has nothing to do with your everyday life... The following article is the reason why I will always research the records of those running for office, and vote accordingly. I will never tell anyone else how to vote, but I will always voice my opinion so my fellow citizens can make an educated choice. I am not directly blaming anyone for the unemployment rate... ok, I am, but he is not running for office.
I had a republican friend remind me that the economy usually flourishes in times of war. That is very true. WWII helped us out of the Great Depression... but then that would beg the question, what is happening now? We are in the depths of a war and our economy is tanking. Could it be because we are spending TONS of money on the Iraq war ($406.2 Billion through December 2007)- 70% of people polled think so.
$406.2 Billion? Think about that. That does not even include what 2008 has cost. That does not include the loss of American lives. I am grateful for the sacrifice that the members of our Armed Forces makes for the country every year... that is not what this blog is about- I do support the job that our troops do. I just think that President Bush and his cronies are making all of pay for a bad decision- and it seems as though we will be paying for a long time. This soapbox sermon could be revisited! :)

To back up this article I have found the follow links. Read up: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
http://www.miseryindex.us/URbymonth.asp
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/03/18/poll.iraq.economy/index.html


The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, dramatic proof of the mounting damage a deeply troubled economy is inflicting on workers and businesses alike.The Labor Department's report, released Friday, showed the increasing toll the housing, credit and financial crises are taking on the economy.The report was sure to rattle Wall Street again.
All the major stock indexes tumbled into bear territory Thursday as investors lost hope of a late-year recovery. With the employment situation deteriorating, there's growing worry that consumers will recoil, throwing the economy into a tailspin later this year or early next year.The jobless rate jumped to 6.1 percent in August, from 5.7 percent in July. And, employers cut payrolls for the eighth month in a row.
Job losses in June and July turned out to be much deeper. The economy lost a whopping 100,000 jobs in June and another 60,000 in July, according to revised figures. Previously, the government reported job losses at 51,000 in each of those months.The latest snapshot was worse than economists were forecasting. They were predicting payrolls would drop by around 75,000 in August and the jobless rate to tick up a notch, to 5.8 percent. The grim news comes as the race for the White House kicks into high gear. The economy's troubles are Americans' top worry.
Wachovia Corp., Ford Motor Co., Tyson Foods Inc. and Alcoa Inc. were among the companies announcing job cuts in August. GMAC Financial Services this week said it would lay off 5,000 workers.Job losses in August were widespread. Factories cut 61,000 jobs, construction firms eliminated 8,000 jobs, retailers axed 20,000 slots, professional and business services slashed 53,000 positions and leisure and hospitality got rid of 4,000. Those losses swamped employment gains in the government, education and health.Job losses at all private employers -- not including government -- came to 101,000 in August.
The government said workers age 25 and older accounted for all the increase in unemployment in August.
Copyright © 2008, Chicago Tribune

Thursday, September 04, 2008

So I was NOT the only one!!

Ahhh, to be right! Below is an article from the AP, describing the fantasy land that Sarah and the Republicans occupy.


Attacks, praise stretch truth at GOP convention
By JIM KUHNHENN, Associated Press WriterWed Sep 3, 11:48 PM ET
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her Republican supporters held back little Wednesday as they issued dismissive attacks on Barack Obama and flattering praise on her credentials to be vice president. In some cases, the reproach and the praise stretched the truth.

Some examples:

PALIN: "I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere."

THE FACTS: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

PALIN: "There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform — not even in the state senate."

THE FACTS: Compared to McCain and his two decades in the Senate, Obama does have a more meager record. But he has worked with Republicans to pass legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year. To demean that accomplishment would be to also demean the work of Republican Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected foreign policy voice in the Senate. In Illinois, he was the leader on two big, contentious measures in Illinois: studying racial profiling by police and requiring recordings of interrogations in potential death penalty cases. He also successfully co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.

PALIN: "The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

THE FACTS: The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.
Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

MCCAIN: "She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America," he said in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson.

THE FACTS: McCain's phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she's no more "responsible" for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state — by population.

MCCAIN: "She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities," he said on ABC.

THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska's national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

FORMER ARKANSAS GOV. MIKE HUCKABEE: Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MITT ROMNEY: "We need change, all right — change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington — throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.

Just to dispell the rumors...

Just so we can all put aside the rumors- I have no problem writing about what I see is wrong with every portion of politics... even Dems. This post (and many more to follow) is proof. This post is about Kwame Kilpatrick, soon to be ex mayor of the city of Detroit. Hopefully we have all watched this situation unfold and took notes, so that it never has to be repeated again. Mayor of the 11th largest city in the country pleading guilty to obstruction... and having been found guilty of perjury. Here's the deal America: it really does not matter to me what politicians do in the bedrooms- as I have stated before, I would appreciate it if they stayed out of my personal proclivities also- but if you are caught, you are caught. DON'T LIE ABOUT IT. In a day and age when a short, cute, Black, former Ohioian can get online and leave her life and thoughts on a blog for all to see, there is a HUGE possibility that someone will find out about your affair. No matter how careful you think you are, people are nosy. There is always a possibility that someone is going to put your business out there. Now, politicians are people- they are not above reproach, BUT you have to have common sense. If you don't want to deal with public opinion, politics is not the game for you. If you don't want to deal with the consequences then don't leave the confines of your marriage for some easy a** on the side. If you don't want to have to explain then don't start something that would lead you towards a press conference. Simple rules, huh? You would think!
Well, good old Kwame started an affair with his former top aide, Christine Beatty. They left text messages, and receipts for anyone to find. Then they both denied it... under oath. For those of you who were wondering, that is perjury! Fast forward a year, today Kwame is stepping down. I must admit that I am not upset. If you cannot keep yourself together enough not to eff your top aide, then you deserve to be in office. I don't feel bad for Kwame. He should think with his big head and not the little one. Both Kwame and Christine should be ashamed of all the crap they put their families and the city of Detroit through. He deserves to lose his office and she deserves to lose her job. Lying never pays...

From the AP:

DETROIT (AP) _ Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has agreed to plead guilty to obstruction charges and will step down after more than six years leading the nation's 11th-largest city.The plea deal was announced during a court hearing Thursday and brings to an end a seven-months-long sex scandal that led to felony charges against Kilpatrick and plunged the city, region and state into political chaos.As part of the plea deal, the 38-year-old Democrat is expected to serve jail time.The married mayor and former top aide Christine Beatty were charged in March with perjury, misconduct and obstruction of justice. They're accused of lying under oath about an affair and their roles in the firing of a deputy police chief. Beatty did not plead guilty and next will appear in court on Sept. 11.

Palin Speech, RNC 9/3/08

Ok, I think that we all know that I am not voting for McCain Palin. No secrets here. With that said I decided that to be fully informed I had to watch and listen to what Palin would say tonight. Let me say this: Sarah Palin is a cute lady. She seems to carry herself well, and I think my male friends would think that she fills out a suit well. Nice hair. Looks fantastic for having a four month old kid.. With that said, I HATED her speech. There was no substance. She spent way too much time badmouthing her opponents and talking about her family- the same family that she doesn't want anyone else to talk about. I actually caught her in lies... She said that the women of the country could count on her and have a "friend" in Washington if they had a disabled child. She may not have been outright lying... I think she meant it, if you are a woman like her. Someone who has health benefits, because she certainly is not supplying benefits. You would also have to be straight, because she does not support same sex unions. You have to be married- conservatives like marriage, go to church, not even considered abortion EVER and not need any manufacturing job (because the conservatives like to send those out of the country). Need proof? Look at her record and the record of this administration. Palin has taken money away from an Alaska program for unwed moms (you know, kids like her daughter, Bristol). As covered before she does not believe in same sex unions or benefits of any kind. The only abortion that she can handle is when the mother's life is in danger- no exceptions.
How can American women look at Sarah and believe that she can be a friend? A friend who doesn't care what the Earth that we turn over to our children will look like... Again, look at her record: she does not believe that global warming is a result of human behavior. How can women listen to what she does not say (because I didn't hear a plan in all that Obama bashing) and think that she is the best thing for our country. The GOP's slogan is country first. I think that there is no room on the GOP ticket for country first because they are oh so busy tryng to steal the Dems thunder.
In her speech Sarah said that the only candidate that has truly served the American public is John McCain. She was referring to his military service, of course. Now, I understand that he was a POW and he was in the military... but that alone is not going to make him a great President. There have been great Presidents that have not served in the military, Clinton, FDR, John Adams, John Quincy Adams- just to name a few. His military service means that he MADE a sacrifice... not that he is or will continue to make one. Military service does not mean that you should be President, just like no military background doesn't mean that you can't be President. Having a special needs child does not mean that you should ascend to the VP office, neither does making your knocked up 17 year old get married, or promising to drill for oil in your home state. It sounds good, but how will she pull it off? Does she think that not being as eloquent as Barack will allow her to say anything because no one will be listening??

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Palin Video

OMG, there IS something that Sarah Palin and I agree on...

Trust me, the things that Sarah Palin and I agree on are limited. In fact, I think that it is safe to say that we agree on ONE thing, and that ONE thing will be illuminated in this blog. I will add the video as soon as I make this entry. In the video, soon to be posted, Sarah is talking about Hillary Clinton. She is commenting on Hillary's complaint that she is under the microscope and receives more negative press because she is a woman. Sarah Palin says that Hillary does herself a disservice by even mentioning that she gets more criticism. She says that Hillary has to know what you are getting into and have to "plow through it." It does not do women who want to progress the country any good to complain about the extra attention... they just have to do better, push on etc. 
LOL. This video was obviously made before Barack Obama gained the nomination, obviously before Sarah Palin was nominated for VP... and OBVIOUSLY before it was announced that her unwed, 17 year old is pregnant. I bet she wishes she could take it back... but here's the deal: I agree with her. I think that women need to be ready for extra criticism; they need to be able to "plow through" as Sarah puts it. With that said I am sure that Sarah will be able to "plow through" my blog if she is reading it!
There has been much said about Bristol Palin, the 17 year old, unwed, pregnant daughter of Sarah and Todd Palin. So I figure that I might as well throw in my two cents, so here goes. Many of my conservative friends have jumped on the "it shouldn't matter" bandwagon when it comes to Bristol.  Even Barack Obama says that children should not be included in the race for the White House. I respectfully disagree. I think that if the shoe was on the other foot, the Republicans would use the fact that Barack's 17 year old daughter was unwed and pregnant to show that he was unfit for the White House. I could just picture that the argument would go something like "he can't even run his own house proficiently, how can we expect him to run a country?" We have heard it before... circa the Clinton Era. Remember? He couldn't be discreet in his personal life and was deemed unable to run the country effectively by the conservatives.  During his TRIAL no one considered Chelsea's feelings. What did she think about the extensive coverage? What did her classmates say? What did she have to endure? No one knows because no one bothered to ask. That was nothing of her own doing. Back then it was just known as the game of politics and it didn't matter who got hurt. Should it matter now?
There is a specific reason why Bristol's pregnancy matters. Her mother has built her entire career worrying about someone else's bedroom. Illustration: Sarah Palin is SUPER pro-life. She doesn't care if you get raped or are a victim of incest. The only time you can get an abortion in her book is if the mother's life is in danger. She also does not believe in same sex marriage. She, in fact has opposed benefits for same sex couples and supported a constitutional ban on same sex marriage. Here is the biggie: Sarah Palin only supports abstinence only sexual education in schools. Seems to me that she spends a lot of time nosing around other people's bedrooms, yet is obviously missing out on what goes on in the bedrooms in her home. Obviously, abstinence only teaching does not work. Not for the Palin family, not for the state of Alaska (which has the highest rate of chlamydia) and not for America as a whole. I will be the first to admit that teen pregnancy is real and a problem in America. Bristol is not the first unwed teenager to get pregnant. But not everyone has a mom that preaches family values and builds a career on telling other people what is morally right. See, Sarah has in fact, put the spotlight on her own family. She is the reason that there is so much to "plow through" on this topic. 
I laugh at the people who ask why does it even matter. It matters because Sarah is running for office. When you run for office, your life is under a microscope. In the video, Palin acknowledges it. She basically says that it is par for the course. Why should it be different for her family? That is right, it shouldn't be. If the Palin family wants privacy, Sarah should drop out of the race. When you are a political family there are certain things that you have to deal with- I believe they call that "paying the cost, so you can be the boss." I don't feel sorry for her, celebrities, actors, or anyone else who lives life in the spotlight for their job. John Edwards is no longer in the Presidential race. Guess what? His life is still being examined and commented on. Conservatives would have you believe now that Scooter Libby should be pardoned, things that happen in Minnesota airport bathrooms shouldn't be talked about, affairs are only things that Democrats have, sex on the job doesn't happen in the GOP, teen pregnancy has no bearing on this Presidential race... does it?? According to Sarah Palin all this scrutiny should be expected... She and her family are just going to rise above it and "plow through"...
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